the six enneads-第75部分

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ver　swift　to　grasp；　are　strong　to　retain。　　　　　But；　once　more；　admitting　two　distinct　principles；　something　quite　separate　remembering　what　sense…perception　has　first　known…　still　this　something　must　have　felt　what　it　is　required　to　remember？　　　　　No；　we　may　well　conceive　that　where　there　is　to　be　memory　of　a　sense…perception；　this　perception　becomes　a　mere　presentment；　and　that　to　this　image…grasping　power；　a　distinct　thing；　belongs　the　memory；　the　retention　of　the　object：　for　in　this　imaging　faculty　the　perception　culminates；　the　impression　passes　away　but　the　vision　remains　present　to　the　imagination。　　　　　By　the　fact　of　harbouring　the　presentment　of　an　object　that　has　disappeared；　the　imagination　is；　at　once；　a　seat　of　memory：　where　the　persistence　of　the　image　is　brief；　the　memory　is　poor；　people　of　powerful　memory　are　those　in　whom　the　image…holding　power　is　firmer；　not　easily　allowing　the　record　to　be　jostled　out　of　its　grip。　　　　　Remembrance；　thus；　is　vested　in　the　imaging　faculty；　and　memory　deals　with　images。　Its　differing　quality　or　degree　from　man　to　man；　we　would　explain　by　difference　or　similarity　in　the　strength　of　the　individual　powers；　by　conduct　like　or　unlike；　by　bodily　conditions　present　or　absent；　producing　change　and　disorder　or　not…　a　point　this；　however；　which　need　not　detain　us　here。　　　　　30。　But　what　of　the　memory　of　mental　acts：　do　these　also　fall　under　the　imaging　faculty？　　　　　If　every　mental　act　is　accompanied　by　an　image　we　may　well　believe　that　this　image；　fixed　and　like　a　picture　of　the　thought；　would　explain　how　we　remember　the　object　of　knowledge　once　entertained。　But　if　there　is　no　such　necessary　image；　another　solution　must　be　sought。　Perhaps　memory　would　be　the　reception；　into　the　image…taking　faculty；　of　the　Reason…Principle　which　accompanies　the　mental　conception：　this　mental　conception…　an　indivisible　thing；　and　one　that　never　rises　to　the　exterior　of　the　consciousness…　lies　unknown　below；　the　Reason…Principle　the　revealer；　the　bridge　between　the　concept　and　the　image…taking　faculty　exhibits　the　concept　as　in　a　mirror；　the　apprehension　by　the　image…taking　faculty　would　thus　constitute　the　enduring　presence　of　the　concept；　would　be　our　memory　of　it。　　　　　This　explains；　also；　another　fact：　the　soul　is　unfailingly　intent　upon　intellection；　only　when　it　acts　upon　this　image…taking　faculty　does　its　intellection　become　a　human　perception：　intellection　is　one　thing；　the　perception　of　an　intellection　is　another：　we　are　continuously　intuitive　but　we　are　not　unbrokenly　aware：　the　reason　is　that　the　recipient　in　us　receives　from　both　sides；　absorbing　not　merely　intellections　but　also　sense…perceptions。　　　　　31。　But　if　each　of　the　two　phases　of　the　soul；　as　we　have　said；　possesses　memory；　and　memory　is　vested　in　the　imaging　faculty；　there　must　be　two　such　faculties。　Now　that　is　all　very　well　as　long　as　the　two　souls　stand　apart；　but；　when　they　are　at　one　in　us；　what　becomes　of　the　two　faculties；　and　in　which　of　them　is　the　imaging　faculty　vested？　　　　　If　each　soul　has　its　own　imaging　faculty　the　images　must　in　all　cases　be　duplicated；　since　we　cannot　think　that　one　faculty　deals　only　with　intellectual　objects；　and　the　other　with　objects　of　sense；　a　distinction　which　inevitably　implies　the　co…existence　in　man　of　two　life…principles　utterly　unrelated。　　　　　And　if　both　orders　of　image　act　upon　both　orders　of　soul；　what　difference　is　there　in　the　souls；　and　how　does　the　fact　escape　our　knowledge？　　　　　The　answer　is　that；　when　the　two　souls　chime　each　with　each；　the　two　imaging　faculties　no　longer　stand　apart；　the　union　is　dominated　by　the　more　powerful　of　the　faculties　of　the　soul；　and　thus　the　image　perceived　is　as　one：　the　less　powerful　is　like　a　shadow　attending　upon　the　dominant；　like　a　minor　light　merging　into　a　greater：　when　they　are　in　conflict；　in　discord；　the　minor　is　distinctly　apart；　a　self…standing　thing…　though　its　isolation　is　not　perceived；　for　the　simple　reason　that　the　separate　being　of　the　two　souls　escapes　observation。　　　　　The　two　have　run　into　a　unity　in　which；　yet；　one　is　the　loftier：　this　loftier　knows　all；　when　it　breaks　from　the　union；　it　retains　some　of　the　experiences　of　its　companion；　but　dismisses　others；　thus　we　accept　the　talk　of　our　less　valued　associates；　but；　on　a　change　of　company；　we　remember　little　from　the　first　set　and　more　from　those　in　whom　we　recognize　a　higher　quality。　　　　　32。　But　the　memory　of　friends；　children；　wife？　Country　too；　and　all　that　the　better　sort　of　man　may　reasonably　remember？　　　　　All　these；　the　one　＇the　lower　man＇　retains　with　emotion；　the　authentic　man　passively：　for　the　experience；　certainly；　was　first　felt　in　that　lower　phase　from　which；　however；　the　best　of　such　impressions　pass　over　to　the　graver　soul　in　the　degree　in　which　the　two　are　in　communication。　　　　　The　lower　soul　must　be　always　striving　to　attain　to　memory　of　the　activities　of　the　higher：　this　will　be　especially　so　when　it　is　itself　of　a　fine　quality；　for　there　will　always　be　some　that　are　better　from　the　beginning　and　bettered　here　by　the　guidance　of　the　higher。　　　　　The　loftier；　on　the　contrary；　must　desire　to　come　to　a　happy　forgetfulness　of　all　that　has　reached　it　through　the　lower：　for　one　reason；　there　is　always　the　possibility　that　the　very　excellence　of　the　lower　prove　detrimental　to　the　higher；　tending　to　keep　it　down　by　sheer　force　of　vitality。　In　any　case　the　more　urgent　the　intention　towards　the　Supreme；　the　more　extensive　will　be　the　soul's　forgetfulness；　unless　indeed；　when　the　entire　living　has；　even　here；　been　such　that　memory　has　nothing　but　the　noblest　to　deal　with：　in　this　world　itself；　all　is　best　when　human　interests　have　been　held　aloof；　so；　therefore；　it　must　be　with　the　memory　of　them。　In　this　sense　we　may　truly　say　that　the　good　soul　is　the　forgetful。　It　flees　multiplicity；　it　seeks　to　escape　the　unbounded　by　drawing　all　to　unity；　for　only　thus　is　it　free　from　entanglement；　light…footed；　self…conducted。　Thus　it　is　that　even　in　this　world　the　soul　which　has　the　desire　of　the　other　is　putting　away；　amid　its　actual　life；　all　that　is　foreign　to　that　order。　It　brings　there　very　little　of　what　it　has　gathered　here；　as　long　as　it　is　in　the　heavenly　regions　only；　it　will　have　more　than　it　can　retain。　　　　　The　Hercules　of　the　heavenly　regions　would　still　tell　of　his　feats：　but　there　is　the　other　man　to　whom　all　of　that　is　trivial；　he　has　been　translated　to　a　holier　place；　he　has　won　his　way　to　the　Intellectual　Realm；　he　is　more　than　Hercules；　proven　in　the　combats　in　which　the　combatants　are　the　wise。　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　FOURTH　TRACTATE。

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　PROBLEMS　OF　THE　SOUL　（2）。

　　　　1。　What；　then；　will　be　the　Soul's　discourse；　what　its　memories　in　the　Intellectual　Realm；　when　at　last　it　has　won　its　way　to　that　Essence？　　　　　Obviously　from　what　we　have　been　saying；　it　will　be　in　contemplation　of　that　order；　and　have　its　Act　upon　the　things　among　which　it　now　is；　failing　such　Contemplation　and　Act；　its　being　is　not　there。　Of　things　of　earth　it　will　know　nothing；　it　will　not；　for　example；　remember　an　act　of　philosophic　virtue；　or　even　that　in　its　earthly　career　it　had　contemplation　of　the　Supreme。　　　　　When　we　seize　anything　in　the　direct　intellectual　act　there　is　room　for　nothing　else　than　to　know　and　to　contemplate　the　object；　and　in　the　knowing　there　is　not　included　any　previous　knowledge；　all　such　assertion　of　stage　and　progress　belongs　to　the　lower　and　is　a　sign　of　the　altered；　this　means　that；　once　purely　in　the　Intellectual；　no　one　of　us　can　have　any　memory　of　our　experience　here。　Further；　if　all　intellection　is　timeless…　as　appears　from　the　fact　that　the　Intellectual　beings　are　of　eternity　not　of　time…　there　can　be　no　memory　in　the　intellectual　world；　not　merely　none　of　earthly　things　but　none　whatever：　all　is　presence　There；　for　nothing　passes　away；　there　is　no　change　from　old　to　new。　　　　　This；　however；　does　not　alter　the　fact　that　distinction　exists　in　that　realm…　downwards　from　the　Supreme　to　the　Ideas；　upward　from　the　Ideas　to　the　Universal　and　to　the　Supreme。　Admitting　that　the　Highest；　as　a　self…contained　unity；　has　no　outgoing　effect；　that　does　not　prevent　the　soul　which　has　attained　to　the　Supreme　from　exerting　its　own　characteristic　Act：　it　certainly　may　have　the　intuition；　not　by　stages　and　parts；　of　that　Being　which　is　without　stage　and　part。　　　　　But　that　would　be　in　the　nature　of　grasping　a　pure　unity？　　　　　No：　in　the　nature　of　grasping　all　the　intellectual　facts　of　a　many　that　constitutes　a　unity。　For　since　the　object　of　vision　has　variety　＇distinction　within　its　essential　oneness＇　the　intuition　must　be　multiple　and　the　intuitions　various；　just　as　in　a　face　we　see　at　the　one　glance　eyes　and　nose　and　all　the　rest。　　　　　But　is　not　this　impossible　when　the　object　to　be　thus　divided　and　treated　as　a　thing　of　grades；　is　a　pure　unity？　　　　　No：　there　has　already　been　discrimination　within　the　Intellectual…Principle；　the　Act　of　the　soul　is　little　more　than　a　reading　of　this。　　　　　First　and　last　is　in　the　Ideas　not　a　matter　of　time；　and　so　does　not　bring　time　into　the　soul's　intuition　of　earlier　and　later　among　them。　There　is　a　grading　by　order　as　well：　the　ordered　disposition　of　some　growing　thing　begins　with　root　and　reaches　to　topmost　point；　but；　to　one　seeing　the　plant　as　a　whole；　there　is　no　other　first　and　last　than　simply　that　of　the　order。　　　　　Still；　the　soul　＇in　this　intuition　within　the　divine＇　looks　to　what　is　a　unity；　next　it　entertains　multiplicity；　all　that　is：　how　explain　this　grasping　first　of　the　unity　and　later　of　the　rest？　　　　　The　explanation　is　that　the　unity　of　this　power　＇the　Supreme＇　is　such　as　to　allow　of　its　being　multiple　to　another　principle　＇the　soul＇；　to　which　it　is　all　things　and　therefore　does　not　present　itself　as　one　indivisible　object　of　intuition：　its　activities　do　not　＇like　its　essence＇　fall　under　the　rule　of　unity；　they　are　for　ever　multiple　in　virtue　of　that　abiding　power；　and　in　their　outgoing　they　actually　become　all　things。　　　　　For　with　the　Intellectual　or　Supreme…　considered　as　distinct　from　the　One…　there　is　already　the　power　of　harbouring　that　Principle　of　Multiplicity；　the　source　of　things　not　previously　existent　in　its　superior。　　　　　2。　Enough　on　that　point：　we　come　now　to　the　question　of　memory　of　the　personality？　　　　　There　will　no